Radio Atlantic, IA – AM 1220

Audit: County official stole car registration fees

June 29th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

GLENWOOD, Iowa (AP) – State auditors say a former county official in western Iowa for years embezzled fees paid by residents renewing their vehicle registration. A report released Friday blames former Mills County Treasurer’s Office employee Tammy Gammon for taking $36,000 that should have been collected for government services. The report says the theft dated back to 2005 and included more than 180 transactions. Auditors say Gammon would enter the vehicle registration information into a state database but later void the transactions and pocket the fees. County Attorney Eric Hansen says the case is troubling because Gammon was hired in 2003 to replace another employee convicted of embezzlement. He says he’ll charge Gammon later Friday with ongoing criminal conduct, first-degree theft, misconduct in office and forgery.